Bill Text: TX SR201 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Recognizing February 22, 2017, as Lubbock Day.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Passed) 2017-02-22 - Reported enrolled [SR201 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SR201-Enrolled.html
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| WHEREAS, Many notable citizens of Lubbock are visiting | ||
| Austin on February 22, 2017, to pay tribute to their city's rich | ||
| heritage and to celebrate Lubbock Day at the State Capitol; and | ||
| WHEREAS, A thriving region of the state, the Lubbock area | ||
| is one of the oldest inhabited places in Texas; archeologists | ||
| have discovered evidence of some 12,000 years of continuous | ||
| habitation at Lubbock Lake Landmark, a national historic and | ||
| state archeological preserve; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The City of Lubbock was incorporated on March 16, | ||
| 1909; the railroads stimulated the city's growth as a trade | ||
| center, but residents also wanted the benefits of an institution | ||
| of higher learning; when legislation creating Texas Technological | ||
| College was finally passed in 1923, the site selection committee, | ||
| impressed by the enthusiasm and hospitality of Lubbock's citizens, | ||
| chose the City of Lubbock for the college's location; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Today, Lubbock is a city of close to 250,000 | ||
| people and is home to the Texas Tech University System and its | ||
| flagship institution, Texas Tech University, a school well | ||
| deserving of its recently acquired tier-one status; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Texas Tech Health Sciences Center attracts | ||
| nearly 5,000 students from around the world and is currently | ||
| ranked as the number-one health university in the nation by the | ||
| SR Education Group, ranking higher than even programs at other | ||
| notable institutions, such as Harvard University, Stanford | ||
| University, and Yale University; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock's three universities and its public | ||
| community college annually draw more than 53,000 students to the | ||
| area and refresh the local economy with around 10,000 new graduates | ||
| each year, thus creating a community where 30 percent of | ||
| residents over the age of 25 hold a college degree or higher; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock's regional labor force numbers more than | ||
| 207,000, and the cost of doing business in the area continues to | ||
| rank as one of the lowest in the nation; the region has one of the | ||
| lowest costs for electric and natural gas utilities, affordable | ||
| land, a low cost of living, and low property taxes; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock is consistently recognized by national | ||
| organizations for its business-friendly atmosphere; it has been | ||
| named the number-one city for women professionals, has been ranked | ||
| in the top 20 for young entrepreneurs to start a business, and has | ||
| been named number seven in the Forbes list of top "Opportunity | ||
| Cities" based on the city's low cost-of-living, cultural offerings, | ||
| and the strength of the business community; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock enjoys a diverse economy that draws its | ||
| strength from agribusiness, manufacturing, and commerce, as well | ||
| as from educational and medical facilities, and the city boasts | ||
| the largest medical infrastructure between Dallas and Phoenix; | ||
| with the growth of cotton culture on the High Plains, Lubbock has | ||
| become one of the world's primary centers for the processing of | ||
| cottonseed and hybrid grain sorghum seed; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Lubbock economy is deeply rooted in cotton | ||
| farming and remains home of the world's largest contiguous cotton | ||
| fields; it is now the home of several major award-winning wineries | ||
| and vineyards that produce more than 70 percent of all the state's | ||
| wine grapes; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock also offers a wealth of cultural and | ||
| recreational venues, including the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, | ||
| the Lubbock Civic Ballet, the Silent Wings Museum, and the Museum | ||
| and Planetarium of Texas Tech University; there are plans for a | ||
| new state-of-the-art performing arts center well underway, and | ||
| it will be named after local legend and rock-and-roll hall-of-famer | ||
| Buddy Holly; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock's meticulously planned infrastructure by | ||
| city leaders has created a low-traffic community with more | ||
| neighborhood parks per capita than any other city in Texas; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock is nicknamed the "Hub City" because it is | ||
| surrounded by five major highways, and the nickname will remain | ||
| intact with the eventual expansion of Interstate 27, which will | ||
| assist in relieving the traffic congestion of other major Texas | ||
| highways; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Those wanting a glimpse of the frontier can find | ||
| it in the restored structures at the Ranching Heritage Center, a | ||
| 15-acre site tracing the evolution of ranch architecture and the | ||
| history of the cattle industry; the region's history is also | ||
| celebrated at the Bayer Museum of Agriculture; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The talented musicians who have come from the | ||
| Lubbock area include Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, the Maines family, | ||
| Virgil Johnson and the Velvets, Waylon Jennings, Tanya Tucker, | ||
| Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Pat Green, and Butch Hancock; their | ||
| rich and diverse contributions have earned Lubbock recognition | ||
| as "The Music Crossroads of Texas"; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Lubbock's thriving business community is represented | ||
| by the largest business federation on the Texas South Plains, the | ||
| Lubbock Chamber of Commerce, which grows and guards the prosperity | ||
| of the Lubbock area; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Early major achievements propelled by the chamber | ||
| during more than a century of service include recruiting farmers | ||
| from out of state to populate and make productive the fertile | ||
| soils of the Llano Estacado, working to bring the railroad to | ||
| Lubbock, establishing the South Plains Fair, and drafting and | ||
| delivering the application to the Texas Capitol that would result | ||
| in establishing Texas Technological College, which today thrives | ||
| as the heart of the Texas Tech University System; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce was instrumental | ||
| in establishing Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport and | ||
| Reese Air Force Base and is noted for its revolutionary market-driven | ||
| Chamber Employer Health Plan that is a model nationwide; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce is the nation's | ||
| first and only chamber to be twice 5-Star Accredited and twice named | ||
| Chamber of the Year; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In addition, the chamber created Imagine Lubbock | ||
| Together, a private-public partnership formed to revitalize the | ||
| Lubbock community and once again bring a culturally sound, vibrant | ||
| downtown to Lubbock; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Among those in the visiting delegation at the | ||
| Capitol today are the proud members of the Lubbock Chamber of | ||
| Commerce's 42nd Leadership Lubbock Class, who represent the | ||
| future business and community leaders of Lubbock; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The citizens of Lubbock have truly kept faith with | ||
| the founders of their West Texas community; renowned for their | ||
| friendliness and warmth, as well as for their hardiness and | ||
| determination, they have helped to build a vital urban center | ||
| that serves not only a large part of West Texas but also eastern | ||
| New Mexico; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 85th | ||
| Legislature, hereby recognize February 22, 2017, as Lubbock Day | ||
| at the State Capitol and extend to the members of the visiting | ||
| delegation and all their fellow citizens sincere appreciation | ||
| for the bright luster they add to the Lone Star State. | ||
| Perry | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| President of the Senate | ||
| I hereby certify that the | ||
| above Resolution was adopted by | ||
| the Senate on February 22, 2017. | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| Member, Texas Senate | ||
